11.20.2006

Ahhh...the PS3 launch day has come and gone. I am sad to say that I am not a proud owner of this wonderful piece of the ultimate gaming machine...yet. Friday, November 17th was definitely at day full of diminishing hopes and filled with breath-taking, heart-stopping, light-headed moments. I am sure that most everyone has great stories to tell of their victories and/or defeats. Here's my abridged story:

After getting a notice the day before from costco.com, my hopes of gaining a PS3 was rising. My hopes had been staggering as launch day was steadily approaching. 11:00 am was the magic time when a limited quantity of PS3 would be available online (PS3s will not arrive at their warehouses until later this year). I had 3 laptops and 2 desktop computers going...I logged in at 8:30 am to make sure my membership info. was up-to-date and all systems were go. 30 minutes before that "magic" time, the beautiful PS3 was displayed on their homepage -- that is, if you were lucky enough to even see it, despite errors and server overloading. I was able to add it to my cart. My heart was racing as I clicked on "Check Out." Time literally stood still as the page slowly loaded, and I mean slowly. After a good 20 minutes passed by, I was greeted by a miserable message -- OUT OF STOCK. I won't go into the details...I'm sure you can fill in the blanks.

With numerous obstacles, such as limited quantities of materials, the number of PS3s shipped on launch day was extremely way below the projected numbers. Even those who luckily pre-ordered their PS3 were still not guaranteed a PS3 on the spot. What's really annoying is the amount of PS3s up for auction on eBay. They make up a whopping 10% of all available units nationwide. With the extremely limited number of consoles available, it would be nice if those who were able to purchase one were true gamers and have the sincere desire and passion to have a PS3. So it pisses me off that many of us won't get one because people who have no intention of owning one but are only looking to make a profit are able to purchase a unit. I have to admit that I know quite a few people who bought their PS3 for the sole purposes of making a hefty profit. A radio station pissed me off even more when they were looking for ideas of how to destroy their PS3s. Now, I'm all for jokes and stunts, but this really bothered me. They made it clear that they weren't giving them away, but were taking calls on methods of destroying the console.

On a happier note, more PS3 are being shipped to the U.S. on a daily basis. We still have a tough road ahead of us, but you can bet that this girl will not stop until the hollow spot under my T.V. is filled.

11.15.2006

The mayor of Rome wants to ban Playstation 2's horror/action video game "Rule of Rose" for its depictions of violence. In all actuality though, there are not many violent scenes in the game. What makes "Rule of Rose" a horror game is the suggestive and disturbing actions and scenes that is portrayed. The eerie mood of the game and what makes this game unique is that it portrays a child's view of the world given certain circumstances. Sure, the game depicts more disturbing scenes rather than violent ones, I don't know if there's any merits to ban the game.

11.14.2006

Dir en Grey continues their Inward Scream Tour in the U.S. and Canada this coming February in 2007. Pre-sale has ended for most locations, but you can buy your tickets on Thursday, November 16, 2006 at 5pm from Ticket Master (www.ticketmaster.com/artist/1013924). Check out their tour dates below:

11.04.2006

We've seen it happen many times...Pinky:st delays come to no surprise to avid collectors. Luckily, we don't need to wait that much longer for their actual release. While the delay of the new Pinky:st yukata style was not unexpected, I was disappointed to here about yet another delay on the RM series. That's right...the 3 Range Murata pinky:st have been delayed yet again, this time it carries at November 30, 2006 release date. I can't remember how long it has been since I pre-ordered these beauties. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the first release date for these figures must be close to one year ago. One wonders if these figures will ever be released.

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Previews, News, Reviews, and Convention Reports of all things Japan, from the perspective of a crazed self-proclaimed Otaku -- from Anime to Manga to J-music to Video Games to Figures to Fashion to Culture. A plethora of goodies for the novice to the veteran fan and everyone else in between.